The UCD Students’ Union (UCDSU) accommodation report has revealed a worsening student housing crisis, with severe shortages of beds for students enrolled at UCD and other universities across Ireland. Despite minor advancements, the main findings of the 37-page report concluded that the student housing landscape has “witnessed a distressing lack of improvement” over the last year, highlighting systemic issues that continue to undermine students’ academic and personal lives.
The Report’s Findings
One of the most significant findings of the report was that 75% of respondents who do not live at home are now paying upwards of €750 per month for housing. This marks a troubling increase from the 2022 and 2023 reports, which found that 66% of students in the same category were paying such amounts. The growing cost of accommodation is creating a substantial barrier to education for many students, pushing them into financial precarity.
Further highlighting the financial strain, 62% of those who do not live at home reported experiencing difficulty in paying for their monthly accommodation, with 25% admitting they find it “extremely difficult.” Additionally, 63% of respondents rely on family support to afford housing, while 10.7% have resorted to private loans to cover costs. These figures suggest a systemic failure to provide affordable housing solutions, leaving many students in an unsustainable situation.
The report also revealed that 16% of students who do not live at home have no formal written agreement outlining the terms and conditions of their lease or alternative arrangements. This slight decrease from the last report, where the figure stood at 17%, still indicates that many students remain vulnerable to exploitation and sudden displacement due to a lack of legal protection.
Beyond financial and legal concerns, the report highlights the worsening impact of the housing crisis on the student experience. Many students are now “enduring long commutes, entering digs arrangements with little legal standing, and facing even graver circumstances.” The report found that these negative impacts are most acute at the beginning of the term, with studies often neglected as students scramble to secure suitable accommodation.
The report also emphasizes a growing divide in the student experience, describing a “two-tier student experience” where a “holistic student experience is no longer the norm and has become a privilege.” Students living far from campus are unable to fully participate in campus life, with commuting distances isolating them from the campus culture, making it difficult to socialize, make friends, or attend events. This division threatens to deepen social inequalities as those who cannot afford to live near campus are effectively excluded from the benefits of a full university experience.
The mental health toll of the housing crisis is also starkly illustrated, with 49% of respondents indicating that “finding accommodation and/or their current accommodation is having a negative impact on their mental health.” This distressing revelation underscores the broader implications of the crisis, beyond the immediate financial and logistical challenges.
Next Steps
While the report’s recommendations remain largely the same, this year’s findings offer deeper insight into the frustrations of UCD students, particularly as the country enters a new election cycle. Notably, 70% of those surveyed said they refuse to support parties and politicians who do not align with UCDSU’s housing demands, and 40% are willing to support a coordinated rent strike. This reflects a significant shift in the political engagement of students, signalling growing impatience with the status quo.
The reiterated recommendations include the abolition of the student contribution charge and all other forms of fees, a re-evaluation of student grants, and a call for students to be assessed as individuals rather than under the income of their parents or guardians. The report also criticizes the lack of progress in developing purpose-built student accommodation, calling for “immediate and significant government intervention and state funding to deliver affordable cost-rental accommodation on college campuses.”
Furthermore, the government is urged to protect vulnerable students in digs, with calls for the progression of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2023. SU President Miranda Bauer, speaking at the report’s launch, stressed the urgency of the situation: “We now need to see a manifestation of the duty of care that the State and higher education institutions have to students. Instead of the rise of student accommodation as an asset class, we need beds for brains. We want our voices heard as we approach an election.”
The housing report, released on August 8th, is the latest in a series of annual SU accommodation reports. Its findings, based on responses from 1,886 students to three anonymous surveys conducted online between November and December 2023, underscore the need for urgent and meaningful action to address the deepening student housing crisis.
By Ellen Clusker – News Editor
